Under the dominance of European and then Creole elites, the people of Latin America have historically looked to Europe and North America as referents for cultural modernity. Until recently, everything related to indigenous people and culture was associated with the idea of underdevelopment. However, with globalisation, contemporary cultural discourses have begun incorporating notions of diversity, difference, inclusion and cultural rights; this allows for the articulation of new critical visions such as that of Paraguayan Ticio Escobar.

A lawyer, curator, teacher, art critic and cultural promoter, Ticio Escobar was Minister of Culture of Paraguay (2008-2012). Prior to that, he was Director of Culture of the Municipality of Asuncion (1991-1996) and founder of the Museum of Indigenous Art. He is the author of the National Law of Culture of Paraguay and President of the Paraguayan Section of the International Association of Art Critics. He has published numerous books on Paraguayan and Latin American art. He currently directs the Centro de Artes Visuales/Museo del Barro in Asunción.

John Kraniauskas is Professor of Latin American Studies at Birkbeck (UL). Expert in literature and cultural studies, he is the author of numerous essays and translations. His latest book is Capitalism and its Discontents: Power and Accumulation in Latin American Culture (University of Wales Press, 2017). He met Ticio Escobar on a trip to Paraguay during the days of Stroessner, as a member of the Parliamentary Group on Human Rights.

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Fray Julián of Alcalá’s Vision of the Ascension of the Soul of King Philip II of Spain, 1645-46, Clark Art Institute

The Clark Art Institute’s Research and Academic Programme recently received a $150,000 grant from the Center for Spain in America that provides funds to host a series of fellowships over the next three to six years to encourage the study of Spanish art. The first fellowship, available for the 2018–19 academic year, is open to candidates from all nations.

The Center for Spain in America (CSA) promotes advanced study and public awareness of Spanish art and visual culture in the United States, also focusing on the history of Spanish presence and the influence of Spanish art and culture on North America. CSA cooperates with universities, libraries, archives, museums, and other educational or cultural institutions fostering academic excellence in the field of Spanish studies in the United States and supporting activities such as symposia, lecture series, exhibitions, and publications.

The CSA Fellowship at the Clark will focus on the study of all aspects of Spanish art from the early medieval period to the beginning of the twentieth century, and on the worldwide impact of Spanish art and artists. The programme is open to scholars or museum professionals researching individual Spanish artists or specific works of art; pursuing projects that include particular periods, geographic regions, subjects, or themes in Spanish art; studying the collecting and connoisseurship of Spanish art, particularly in the Americas; and examining the influence and importance of Spanish art and its reception throughout the world. It is anticipated that CSA Fellows may undertake publishing projects and/or exhibition research activities during their tenure at the Clark.

The Center for Spain in America is affiliated with the Madrid-based Centro de Estudios Europa Hispánica. José Luis Colomer, a noted scholar of Spanish art, directs both organizations and has worked closely with Olivier Meslay, Felda and Dena Hardymon Director of the Clark, to establish the new programme.

The CSA Fellowship underscores the Clark’s international initiatives. Over the last decade, the Research and Academic Programme has hosted a number of leading Spanish scholars as fellows, including several curators from the Museo del Prado, Madrid. The Clark and the Prado have also forged a strong collaborative curatorial relationship. In 2010, the Clark lent its entire collection of works by Pierre-Auguste Renoir to the Prado for the highly successful exhibition Pasión por Renoir. In 2016, the Prado reciprocated by lending many of its finest works to the Clark for the exhibition Splendor, Myth, and Vision: Nudes from the Prado.

ARTES will post more information on the fellowship as it becomes available.